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Old 18-07-2023, 21:01   #1
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Noonsite.com Alternatives?

Fellow cruisers... we would appreciate your suggestions for information-rich websites that contain current port details, pre-arrival requirements, grocery store locations, marinas, anchorages, marine trades, LPG availability, etc.

Since crossing the Pacific in 2009, we cruised exclusively in Australia until last month. About six months ago, we became monthly subscribers to Noonsite in anticipation of finishing our circumnavigation, thinking that the information there would again be invaluable to our understanding of each country along our route. However, we have noted that most of Noonsite's cruiser comments are 5-8 years old and no longer accurate (at least this the case for the Mascarenes and Indian Ocean).

Perhaps in the past 14 years, other cruiser-rich resources have evolved. Could you please share these with us?

Many thanks,

Crew of Painted Skies
anchored at Port Mathurin, Rodrigues
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Old 18-07-2023, 21:06   #2
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Re: Noonsite.com Alternatives?

https://www.noforeignland.com/
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Old 18-07-2023, 22:04   #3
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Re: Noonsite.com Alternatives?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Painted Skies View Post
Fellow cruisers... we would appreciate your suggestions for information-rich websites that contain current port details, pre-arrival requirements, grocery store locations, marinas, anchorages, marine trades, LPG availability, etc.

Since crossing the Pacific in 2009, we cruised exclusively in Australia until last month. About six months ago, we became monthly subscribers to Noonsite in anticipation of finishing our circumnavigation, thinking that the information there would again be invaluable to our understanding of each country along our route. However, we have noted that most of Noonsite's cruiser comments are 5-8 years old and no longer accurate (at least this the case for the Mascarenes and Indian Ocean).

Perhaps in the past 14 years, other cruiser-rich resources have evolved. Could you please share these with us?

Many thanks,

Crew of Painted Skies
anchored at Port Mathurin, Rodrigues
You are experiencing the great failure of "crowd sourced" information. The "crowd" gets bored with any one data source, no matter how good or useful, and abandons it.

Since nobody is willing to actually pay for edited, published information anymore, the concept of a "cruising guide" is almost quaintly obsolete. Leaving you with... bupkis for vetted, reliable information.

I find myself doing a LOT more original research diving down to the sources of the data. Where that used to involve taking a book from the shelf and 10 minutes of reading, now I have to spend hours on the web to find current information I consider reliable. It's not a good trend.
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Old 19-07-2023, 02:02   #4
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Re: Noonsite.com Alternatives?

So true, it's getting harder to find valuable information amongst the clutter. Unfortunately, localised and specialised Facebook groups are the new trend and most useful alternatives.
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Old 19-07-2023, 02:46   #5
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Re: Noonsite.com Alternatives?

For better or for worse that’s what AI bots are for now. Basically what they are doing is cataloging all of this information.

Here is a response to the question from Bard:

“ What exactly is currently required for a private American boat to visit Mauritius?”


“ As of July 19, 2023, the following are the requirements for a private American boat to visit Mauritius:

All crew and passengers must have a valid passport and a visa.
The boat must be registered with the Mauritius Ports Authority.
The boat must have a valid safety certificate.
The boat must have a negative COVID-19 test result taken within 72 hours of arrival.
The boat must be inspected by the Mauritius Ports Authority upon arrival.
The Mauritius Ports Authority can be reached at +230 203 4242.”


While there can be some factually incorrect things as well as missing information, it’s usually a pretty good place to start.
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Old 19-07-2023, 02:48   #6
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Re: Noonsite.com Alternatives?

“What are the best ports of entry in Mauritius that have grocery stores and marine supplies nearby?”

“ Here are the best ports of entry in Mauritius that have grocery stores and marine supplies nearby:

Port Louis is the main port of entry in Mauritius and is located on the north coast. There are a number of grocery stores and marine suppliers located in the city, including the Super U Grand Baie, which is a large supermarket, and the Marine Supplies Mauritius, which is a marine hardware store.”

Noticed it looks like it botched to the marine supply store. You will have to just re-ask the question in a better way to get more specific information. Like this:

Sure, here are some marine supply stores in Port Louis, Mauritius:

Espace Marin Ltd is a well-known marine supply store in Mauritius. They offer a wide range of products, including boat accessories, fishing gear, outboard motors, and more. They have two locations in Port Louis, one in Les Pailles and one in Port Louis.


But at this point, Google maps works just fine.
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Old 19-07-2023, 16:10   #7
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Re: Noonsite.com Alternatives?

I really truly do not like the new Noonsite format.

There is of course the cruising wiki at the top of this page ^^^ https://www.cruiserswiki.org/wiki/Wo...d_Sailing_Wiki

Sadly while a lot of people seem to want to extract information few seem willing to share what they know. Hence little information on many countries although the tell me the Chile section is quite good.

Note to self - must add something to Ecuador.
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A little bit about Chile can be found here https://www.docdroid.net/bO63FbL/202...anchorages-pdf
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Old 19-07-2023, 17:51   #8
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Re: Noonsite.com Alternatives?

Quote:
Originally Posted by El Pinguino View Post
Sadly while a lot of people seem to want to extract information few seem willing to share what they know.
Once upon a time, you took the time and effort to pull together information about a cruising locale, with a little talent and effort you could pull it together, publish it, and get paid for it. Not a lot, but something.

Now it seems people expect me to spend the time and effort to write and post on a site FOR FREE so somebody ELSE can make money on it. Sorry, I am not that magnanimous.

I am happy to write up detailed articles that share what I have learned, and I have, for people willing to pay me for that time and effort.
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Old 19-07-2023, 18:06   #9
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pirate Re: Noonsite.com Alternatives?

Where's the spirit of adventure gone.. everyone wants a TripAdvisor these days..
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Old 19-07-2023, 18:13   #10
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Re: Noonsite.com Alternatives?

Quote:
Originally Posted by El Pinguino View Post
I really truly do not like the new Noonsite format.

There is of course the cruising wiki at the top of this page ^^^ https://www.cruiserswiki.org/wiki/Wo...d_Sailing_Wiki

Sadly while a lot of people seem to want to extract information few seem willing to share what they know. Hence little information on many countries although the tell me the Chile section is quite good.

Note to self - must add something to Ecuador.
Noonsite was started by Jimmy Cornell. It was a cruising site by a cruiser who spent time working to keep the information current. It mostly matched the information in his books. Then for the most up to date information there were user comments.

After he sold it, focus seemed to shift to changing the site format and more effort was put there than the quality of the information. It slowly became less useful. Now, with the most recent updates it is terrible, AND you have to pay for it! (other than just a peek)

Bummer, but that is progress until something replaces it.
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Old 19-07-2023, 18:24   #11
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Re: Noonsite.com Alternatives?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Chotu View Post
For better or for worse that’s what AI bots are for now. Basically what they are doing is cataloging all of this information.

Here is a response to the question from Bard:

“ What exactly is currently required for a private American boat to visit Mauritius?”


“ As of July 19, 2023, the following are the requirements for a private American boat to visit Mauritius:

All crew and passengers must have a valid passport and a visa.
The boat must be registered with the Mauritius Ports Authority.
The boat must have a valid safety certificate.
The boat must have a negative COVID-19 test result taken within 72 hours of arrival.
The boat must be inspected by the Mauritius Ports Authority upon arrival.
The Mauritius Ports Authority can be reached at +230 203 4242.”


While there can be some factually incorrect things as well as missing information, it’s usually a pretty good place to start.
WARNING !

AI's will make up information and state as fact! If you continue and ask what the visa requirements for someone from a specific country, where the port authority is, etc. you will likely get a made up story.

AI's are fun to play with. But they do not have real time access to the internet or any information and have not accurately cataloged the data they were trained on. Use them at your own peril and verify anything they say.

The information on noonsite (I just looked) is much more complete than that AI report, and there are several important discrepancies. I would trust noonsite between the two.
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Old 19-07-2023, 19:17   #12
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Re: Noonsite.com Alternatives?

Quote:
Originally Posted by wholybee View Post
WARNING !

AI's will make up information and state as fact! If you continue and ask what the visa requirements for someone from a specific country, where the port authority is, etc. you will likely get a made up story.

AI's are fun to play with. But they do not have real time access to the internet or any information and have not accurately cataloged the data they were trained on. Use them at your own peril and verify anything they say.

The information on noonsite (I just looked) is much more complete than that AI report, and there are several important discrepancies. I would trust noonsite between the two.
If you go to an AI site for your critical information you deserve what you get. Just do NOT.
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Old 19-07-2023, 22:14   #13
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Re: Noonsite.com Alternatives?

Many thanks to everyone for your links and thoughts on why we are finding it difficult to source cruising destination information all in one neat tidy place. 'In the old days' and early-GPS era, we had cruising guides for this, along with tourist books like Lonely Planet to supplement. As mentioned, the main alternative is web-searching, only to find disappointingly few bits of the whole picture and then often old/incorrect data. This is especially daunting to accomplish in places where mobile data is limited. We have used Facebook and noforeignland but even those resources require extensive 'burrowing down' to garner specifics. The cruiserswiki site probably comes the closest to a format that is easy for locating specific information - but as already mentioned, it is sadly incomplete. Contributions by the community are the key, but perhaps this no longer a priority for most cruisers. Admittedly, I stopped posting information/experience via social sites such as Cruisers Forum many years ago. This is actually the first thread we ever started here, not because we want a TripAdvisor experience but rather because we like to educate ourselves prior to arrival in a new port (and often make our decision on where to visit, based on this). Perhaps this will inspire us to write a comprehensive cruiserswiki page for Rodrigues.

We have yet to try AI. However, if it utilizes data from Google Maps to locate businesses and services it would certainly be inaccurate here in Rodrigues. Using Google Maps, we noted that not one of the places we searched for on foot was accurately located (just a few examples: The Marché was closed down at least 6 years ago, Loul & Co Boulangerie was on the wrong side of town, the Bazaar Saturday Market had moved three blocks at least 8 years ago, DHL was never in the spot indicated ever, and Fruit Lovers Supermarket was not even on the map). Mauritius is 300 miles away, so cannot verify AI's accuracy there.

Thank you again to those who offered ideas. Here's a photo of Port Mathurin, along with the sum total of cruising boats here - that us!
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Old 20-07-2023, 13:01   #14
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Re: Noonsite.com Alternatives?

I too have found noonsite not as "good" as in the past. My guess is that the subscription requirement is what has/is killing it. Personally, I've made several recent updates/comments there, since the info I had was so poor and unreliable. Shame.
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Old 20-07-2023, 23:54   #15
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Re: Noonsite.com Alternatives?

I am surprised no one has mentioned Zulu Waterways. Looks like some information about Mauritius on there.
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